It’s really pretty simple, isn’t it? It’s really just an urban night scene, with Bowie front and center (though surprisingly small).
Perhaps it’s the colors, which just seem so perfect. I do know it was colorized (like old postcards). I’m not totally sure, though, why that would make it so engaging.
I do know the cover was from a photograph by Brian Ward. He did some more stuff for Bowie, and also for Jethro Tull:
The colorist was Terry Pastor, who has about two dozen other credits:
The two also collaborated on Bowie's Hunky Dory album:
K. West was a furriers. They’re gone now. In fact, the whole scene’s changed quite a bit.
There’s also a plaque there now as well:
By the way, the official address is 23 Heddon St., in Soho. I believe Bowie had been recording in a studio nearby.
There are some interesting theories out there about this one. On the less crazy end of the spectrum, we’ve got the idea that “K. WEST” can be read as “quest.” On the other Paul-is-dead / “Here’s to my sweet Satan” end, we’ve got some pretty involved stuff that posits the cover – and the whole album – predicts the birth and rise of Kanye West.
It’s not like Bowie’s ideas behind the album aren’t crazy enough, right? It is a great album though – “Suffragette City,” “Starman,” “Ziggy Stardust,” “Moonage Daydream” … It’s generally recognized as his breakthrough album.
I was always a huge Bowie fan. I didn’t go in for all the crazy androgynous / glam / former art student stuff, but I did think the music was incredible. Very creative, very wide-ranging, very theatrical (in a good way), pretty downright catchy.
Of course somebody had some fun with this one:
No comments:
Post a Comment